Assassin's First Christmas
by Clintasha4evr
Summary: **SEQUEL TO TAKEN** It's been a couple of months since Clint and Natasha rescued their daughter from a twisted human experimenter, and they're finally ready to relax and spend the holidays as a family. There's just one problem. Natasha has never celebrated Christmas...
1. You've Never What!

**Hey! I'm baaaaaaaaack! So, this is my holiday sequel to Taken, like many of you know. I really just wanted to point out real quick that it takes place before the epilogue of Taken, but after chapter 15. This is a sort of in between story I guess. For those of you who read my first story thank you for taking an interest in its sequel! So glad you decided that it was worth reading! For those of you who haven't read my first story, I'd highly recommend reading it before you read this one (If you're interested, here's the URL: s/8616784/1/Taken ). You don't have to I guess, but it would make a lot more sense if you did. Anyways, this story shouldn't be too long. It will probably be close to 5-8 chapters maybe… but we'll see how far it goes. So, just a quick recap: Clint and Natasha are NOT married, Natasha is NOT pregnant, and they are living in Stark Tower together with Mara. Oh, and Merry Christmas! Hope you all had a good one! I know I did, cuz my parents got me a Hawkeye figure! Best Christmas EVER! Well, here's the first chapter of my new story! Enjoy!**

**P.S. Don't laugh at my cover art! I know Clint looks stupid but that was the best I could do! I suck at drawing people…**

**Chapter 1-You've Never What!?**

**Clint**

Clint weaved through the busy Manhattan traffic on his way back to Stark Tower. It was 7:00am and the streets were filled with Black Friday shoppers. Since he'd been out of a job for the past few months, Clint had decided to go Christmas shopping today to get better deals on gifts. He had left the tower around 5:00am and had already found great presents for everyone… except Natasha.

This was going to be their first Christmas together as a family, and Clint _really_ wanted to get her something special, he just wasn't sure what. Everyone else had been easy to shop for, but Natasha was another story. In the past, if he was going to buy her something, he would have just bought her a gun or some other weapon that she would find useful. But now, since they didn't work as assassins anymore, he was drawing a blank on gift ideas. Maybe he could get Pepper to ask her what she wanted. She and Natasha had been spending lots of time together as Pepper's due date began to draw near so it would be easy for her to casually slip it in to one of their conversations.

Clint pulled into the parking garage under Stark Tower and parked his car in the first empty space. He grabbed his bags from the backseat and climbed out before heading towards the elevator. He pushed the button for his and Natasha's floor and began the long ride up. About half way up the elevator came to a halt and the doors opened allowing a busy looking Tony Stark to step inside.

"Oh, hey Clint." The billionaire said as he pressed the button for the top floor.

"Hey." He answered. Tony's eyes glazed over the bags he had sitting on the floor next to him.

"Black Friday shopping?" He implied.

"Yea, trying to save a few bucks, being out of a job and all." Clint said, slightly embarrassed. Tony rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Dude, I'm a billionaire. If you need money…"

"I'm not taking your money, Tony." The archer said, cutting him off.

"Clint, you have a daughter, who also happens to be my goddaughter, and a girlfriend who is recovering from a near-death experience, plus it's almost Christmas. Let me help you out." He pleaded. Clint sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He _did_ need the extra money, especially if he wanted to get Natasha something special. "Please, please, please, please, please, please…" Tony continued to beg while repeatedly poking him in the shoulder.

"Okay, fine!" Clint finally exclaimed. "Under two conditions: You let me pay you back as soon as I get a job, and you _do not_ let Natasha know."

"Done deal." Tony said, holding out his hand. Clint hesitantly took it and shook it firmly. They continued their ride in silence until Tony's curiosity overcame him. "Soooo… what did you buy for Mara?" Clint shot him an irritated look. "I just want to know so I don't accidentally get her the same thing." The billionaire said innocently.

"Natasha said there was this baby doll she's really wanted ever since she saw a commercial for it on TV, so I got her that." He told him.

"Oh, yea. I know the one." Tony said with a nod. "What about Natasha?"

"_That_ is none of your business." The archer said stubbornly.

"Yea, you've got nothing." He smirked.

"Okay, you don't know how hard she is to shop for!" Clint shot back.

"Oh, I don't know about that. Pepper and I found her something without too much trouble." Tony said slyly.

"Are you kidding me!? What is it?" He exclaimed.

"I'm not saying! It's sorta for the two of you." The billionaire told him. Clint groaned and put his head in his hands.

"Man, what am I gonna do?" He asked. "I really want to get her something special since it's our first Christmas as a family, but I have _no_ idea what!" Tony placed his hand on his back sympathetically.

"I think I may be able to help you out with that." He said encouragingly. Just then, the elevator dinged and the doors opened on Clint's floor.

"See ya." He said, grabbing his bags and heading towards his and Natasha's room.

"I got your back, bro!" Tony called after him. Clint rolled his eyes and walked into the bedroom. He took the bags to his closet and closed the door before wandering out into the living area in search of his family.

"Natasha?" He called his girlfriend's name but received no answer. After checking the kitchen, as well as Mara's room, Clint concluded that she and their daughter must be with Pepper. He wanted to let her know that he was back, so he headed towards the elevator to check the top floor. They usually hung out up there when they wanted to talk about things like pregnancy tips and such. That was mainly the reason Pepper and Tony had insisted they stay there, so that Natasha could help Pepper through the final months of her pregnancy. Especially since business at Stark Industries was booming, so Tony was always busy and sometimes unable to be there for his wife. But, the billionaire swore up and down that he would be taking the next couple of weeks off so he'd be free when the baby came.

Clint entered the elevator and sighed. He wished more than anything that he could have been there for Natasha when she was pregnant with Mara. He pressed the button for the top floor and swore to himself that if they ever had another baby, she wouldn't have to do it alone. Not again.

**Natasha**

"Are contractions really _that_ bad?" Pepper asked as she took a sip of her tea. Natasha shrugged.

"The doctors say it's different for everyone." She told her.

"Well, how were they for you?"

"I remember that when my contractions started I noticed that they didn't seem nearly as bad as they make them look on TV." Natasha said with a smile. Pepper smiled back and sighed as she placed her tea on the end table next to her.

"Alright then. Tony should be here any moment, so I think that's enough pregnancy talk for today." She laughed. "So, how are you doing? Bruce told me yesterday that you were supposed to go see him for a final check-up this morning."

"Yep. He gave me a clean bill of health. Well, minus the scars…" Natasha sighed, placing a hand over her stomach where Varkov had stabbed her. "And I was _so_ looking forward to bikini season." She joked. Pepper laughed.

"Don't worry, you won't be the only one stuck in a one piece!" The pregnant woman exclaimed. "I'm sure I'll have plenty of stretch marks to hide after this baby is born." They both broke out in laughter as the elevator doors opened and Tony stepped out.

"What's so funny?" He asked, scooping Mara up off the floor where she'd been playing and sitting down with her on the couch. The two-year-old laughed hysterically as he gave her a raspberry on her stomach. Natasha smiled, admiring how great he was with her. Who would have thought Tony Stark could be so paternal?

"Natasha was just explaining contractions to me." Pepper said matter-of-factly.

"Never mind, I don't wanna know!" Tony replied quickly. They both giggled as the billionaire handed Mara to Natasha and stood up to go get a drink. Suddenly, the elevator dinged again and Clint entered the room.

"Hey." He said as he came over and gave Natasha a peck on the lips.

"Hi." She replied. "Where've you been?"

"Out." Clint told her before placing a kiss on Mara's head. Natasha rolled her eyes.

"Well, duh. Where specifically?" She pressed.

"Someone's nosy." He chuckled as she swiftly backhanded him on the shoulder. "If you must know, I was just doing a little early Christmas shopping."

"Oh." She said uninterested. "Christmas." Clint gave her an odd look.

"What's wrong with Christmas?" He asked.

"Nothing, it's just… I've never really celebrated it before." She said, gently caressing Mara's cheek. As soon as she said it the entire room went quiet. Natasha glanced around the room and was met by three pairs of disbelieving eyes.

"You've never what!?" Clint exclaimed beside her.

"I've never celebrated Christmas." She repeated.

"Oh my God." Pepper whispered.

"_Why_!?" Tony asked from the bar.

"Because, I just haven't." Natasha said sternly, wishing the conversation would just end.

"Not even when you were a kid?" Clint asked. She turned to glare at him.

"Well, I didn't exactly have a normal childhood, Clint. You of all people should know that." She said angrily. His expression immediately changed from shocked to apologetic.

"Oh, God Tasha I'm sorry." He said quietly. She sighed and grabbed his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Don't worry about it." She told him.

"Wait," Tony chimed in, "does this mean Mara has never celebrated Christmas either?"

"Yep." Said Natasha.

"Okay, then it's settled." The billionaire said excitedly. "Romanoff, get ready to celebrate your first Christmas _ever_!"

"That sounds great, except that I have absolutely no idea _how_ to celebrate Christmas." She countered.

"Well, luckily the rest of us do!" Clint said, mimicking Tony's excitement. "We'll be there to tell you what to do."

"Alright, fine." Natasha finally agreed. "I'll celebrate Christmas this year."

"Sweet!" Tony exclaimed as he ran off towards his office gesturing for Clint to follow. "Looks like we've got some planning to do!" The archer kissed her on the cheek and swiftly followed him.

"This is gonna be fun…" Pepper said with a hint of worry in her voice. Natasha groaned and buried her face in Mara's hair.

"What have I done?" She mumbled, wondering whether or not agreeing to celebrate Christmas was the most poorly thought through decision she had ever made.

**Weeeee! I heart writing fanfiction! So, how does this sound so far? Is anyone interested in how Natasha will react to her first Christmas? Lots of stuff is gonna be going on in the upcoming chapters, like the gift Clint ends up getting Natasha for Christmas (which I've already decided on! Heeheehee!), plus the gifts for all the other Avengers who will be joining them for the holidays, which are gonna be awesome! Lots of romance, quite a bit of drama as well, and a big Christmas surprise that will warm your heart! Hope you decide to keep reading this little sequel to my first story! A lot of the stuff that happens in the next story will be based off of events in **_**this**_** story. Bleh, well I'm rambling! Sorry. Here's a little preview for the next chapter:**

**Chapter 2-Christmas Trees: Clint and Tony struggle to find a gift for Natasha while she and Pepper discuss possible gift ideas for the rest of the Avengers. And, as the title implies, the Avengers get Christmas trees! **

**These chapters are gonna be a bit shorter than the ones in Taken were, so they should be up a lot sooner than usual! Thanks for reading and I hope you come back for the next installment!**


	2. Christmas Trees

**Alright! First off, I'm sorry this took so long. I know I say this a lot, but I went back to school this week and had two horseback riding lessons so there wasn't really any time to write. I can't promise how fast the next few chapters will be up cuz I have exams coming up next week and I desperately need to study for them. I'll do my best to get them up ASAP though! Anyways, I don't really have too much to say about this chapter cuz I don't wanna spoil anything, so why don't I let you just get right into it!**

**Chapter 2-Christmas Trees**

**Clint**

Clint steadily held his end of the measuring tape while Tony climbed atop a chair and pulled the opposite end up to the ceiling. Natasha and Pepper observed them from the couch a few feet away while Mara played on the floor in front of them.

"Um, what exactly are you two doing?" Natasha asked after a few moments of judgmental staring.

"What's it at?" Tony asked, completely ignoring her.

"Thirteen feet." Clint replied.

"So, what do you think, twelve footer?"

"Yea, sounds good." He replied as the billionaire pulled out his phone and began dialing a number.

"Uh, hello? Are either one of you gonna answer me?" Natasha said, slightly irritated.

"We're measuring the ceiling so we know what size tree to get." Clint told her as he came over and joined them on the couch.

"Tree?" She questioned. The archer's mouth fell open as he stared at her in disbelief.

"Are you serious? You don't know what a Christmas tree is?" Natasha rolled her eyes.

"Yes, I know what a Christmas tree is!" She exclaimed. "I just didn't realize when I agreed to do this last week that you two were gonna go all out."

"What do you mean 'go all out'? You can't have Christmas without a Christmas tree!" He shot back.

"Okay, I get it!" She said exasperatedly. "Christmas tree equals important." Just then, Tony hung up his phone and walked back over towards the couch.

"Alright, they should be here tomorrow." He said happily.

"What, the trees?" Clint asked.

"Yes, the trees! There's only three weeks till Christmas, so we need to get a jump on things!" Tony exclaimed.

"I don't understand why you don't just order one of those fake trees off the internet. It's a lot less expensive and a lot less hassle." Pepper chimed in. Clint and Tony stared at her like she was insane.

"Are you kidding me? There's no way a fake tree can match the beauty or quality of a real Frasier Fir Christmas tree." The billionaire said to his wife.

"Frasier Fir?" Natasha said questioningly. Tony and Clint nodded.

"They're the best species of Christmas tree you can get." Clint said like the information was obvious.

"Every year I have a tree sent up from North Carolina." Tony said proudly.

"Why?" She asked.

"Because, North Carolina grows and sells the best Frasier Firs you can hope to buy. They're the country's top distributors of Christmas trees. Even the White House gets its tree from there." The billionaire replied.

"I don't understand how or why you need to know all of this…" Natasha trailed off.

"Trust me. After a few years of celebrating Christmas with _us_, you'll understand." He told her.

"Great." She said sarcastically. Tony grabbed Clint's arm and began dragging him towards the elevator.

"Okay, well we need to go make some calls and discuss a few other things so we'll see you later…" The billionaire said suspiciously.

"Who are you calling?" Natasha asked.

"Everyone!" He exclaimed.

"Steve and Sharon, Thor and Jane. We're inviting them all to come and join us for the festivities." Clint explained.

"I see." She said dimly.

"Oh, c'mon Tasha! Get in the Christmas spirit!" He said enthusiastically before following Tony onto the elevator. She mumbled something that Clint didn't quite catch as the doors slid closed.

"Your girlfriend's a Grinch." Tony told him once the elevator was moving.

"Cut her some slack, it's her first time." The archer said defensively. Tony looked at him and smirked, immediately having to duck to avoid Clint's fist. "Shut up, you know what I mean!" He yelled. "Pervert."

"Calm down, I'm just messing with you!" The billionaire laughed. Clint sighed and shook his head. "Alright, so where are you with gift ideas for the lady assassin?"

"Well, I have one idea…" He said thoughtfully. "I'm just not sure about it."

"Uh, yea, you're gonna have to give me more than that." Tony huffed. "What is it?" Clint shook his head.

"Not telling."

"Oh, c'mon!" The billionaire whined. "Why can't I know?"

"Because, it's kind of a big deal and would involve total secrecy" He replied.

"I can keep a secret!" Tony exclaimed. Clint raised an eyebrow. "Most of the time." He added quickly.

"Sorry man, this one is staying with me until I make a final decision." The elevator doors opened and the two men stepped out into the main area of the top floor. Tony, who thankfully had accepted that Clint wasn't telling him anything about Natasha's potential gift, sat down on one of the couches and began dialing Steve's number. Clint collapsed onto the couch opposite to him and leaned his head back.

While Tony talked to Steve, he began daydreaming about Natasha's gift. The idea he had was huge. Like, HUGE. It had sounded perfect when he came up with it, but the more he thought about it the more he was unsure that doing something so big so soon was such a good idea. Plus, it would definitely not be cheap, and he didn't want to owe Tony _too_ much money…

Clint gave a heavy sigh. He would really need to think it all through before all was said and done. If he _did_ decide to go through with it, he just hoped Natasha liked it…

**Natasha**

Natasha watched the elevator doors close and sighed.

"I'm in love with a crazy person." She mumbled when Clint and Tony were gone. Pepper looked at her and grinned. "What?"

"Nothing," she beamed, "you just said that you loved him is all."

"Uh, yea." Natasha smirked. "It's not the first time I've said it."

"Well, it's the first time I've heard you say it." Pepper smiled. "So, where are you two exactly? In your relationship, I mean."

"Hmmmm, well we have a baby…" Natasha began.

"No, no, you know what I mean!" Pepper exclaimed. "Do you think you guys ever might get married, or have _another_ baby…" She trailed off. Natasha thought for a moment. They had never really talked about any of that. Clint had only just gotten to know Mara and Natasha had been recovering from her stomach injury, so the subject of their future together never really came up.

"I honestly have no idea." She finally concluded. "I mean, it's only been a couple of months." Pepper nodded.

"Well, what if he randomly just says 'hey, let's get married'? What would you say?" She asked.

"I don't know." Natasha said with a shrug.

"It's a yes or no question." Pepper pressed.

"And when the time comes for me to answer it, I'm sure I'll know what to say." She said conclusively.

"You're impossible." The pregnant woman sighed. The familiar ding of the elevator caught both the women's attention and they both turned to see Bruce enter the room.

"Hey, I hope I'm not interrupting, but do either of you know where Tony is?" He asked politely.

"Yea, top floor." Natasha told him.

"Thanks." The scientist said before reentering the elevator. As soon as the doors slid closed, Pepper grabbed Natasha's hand.

"I need your help." She said urgently. Natasha immediately grew anxious.

"What's wrong, is it the baby?" She asked in a panicky voice.

"What? No!" Pepper exclaimed. "It's Bruce." Natasha released a sigh of relief.

"Jesus, Pepper, don't do that to me!" She scolded.

"Sorry." Pepper said sheepishly

"What about Bruce?" Natasha asked.

"I feel bad for him." She told her. "He always seems so… lonely."

"What do you mean? He has all of us." Natasha replied.

"Well, yea he has _all_ of us, but he doesn't have _one_ of us." Pepper said, gaining a confused look from her friend. "Think about it. Tony has me, Clint has you, Steve has Sharon, and Thor has Jane. Bruce doesn't have anyone."

"So what, you want to set him up?" She asked incredulously. "Because I don't foresee that going well."

"I don't want to set him up, I just want to…" Pepper trailed off. Natasha gasped as the sudden realization of what she was getting at sank in.

"No." She said firmly.

"C'mon! We should find her!" The pregnant woman exclaimed.

"No." She said more forcibly.

"Why not?"

"Because if he really wanted to see her, don't you think he would have done something about it by now?"

"Of course not! You know as well as I do how shy Bruce can be." Pepper told her.

"I don't think that has anything to do with it." Natasha shot back.

"Do you know how well he's been doing with controlling the Hulk?" She asked softly. "Tony said he's gotten to the point where he can only transform when _he_ wants to!"

"Really?" Natasha said thoughtfully. She didn't know _that_…

"Yea, that's why we should call her up. Bring her here for Christmas!" Pepper said excitedly.

"That sounds beautiful and all, but there are a few potential issues with your plan…"

"Like what?"

"Well, there's the possibility that Bruce maybe doesn't want to see her yet." Natasha told her.

"That's a risk we'll have to take. Next." Pepper said crossing her arms.

"Okay, secondly, she may have moved on." She continued.

"Well, that's why _we're_ the ones who would call her up! That way we can find out these things. Obviously if she's moved on we won't bring her here."

"Which leads into my third point: How the heck _are_ we supposed to find her?" Natasha raised an eyebrow as Pepper began to laugh.

"She's a famous scientist, Natasha. I can't imagine it will be too hard." Finally, she sighed in defeat.

"Okay." She mumbled. I'll help you find her. But, if I think Bruce could get hurt because of this, then we're not doing it."

"Deal!" Pepper squealed. This was going to be interesting…

**Clint**

The next day…

"How the hell are we supposed to get these inside?" Clint asked, looking over the two massive Christmas trees that had just arrived. "There is no way they're gonna fit in the elevator." Tony looked at him like he was stupid.

"No shit." He said, rolling his eyes. "I have to fly them up to the balcony. That's the only door they'll fit through."

"Alright, so what I do?" Clint asked.

"Go upstairs and wait for me to bring it to you, then just drag it inside." The billionaire told him as he began walking towards the elevator. Clint followed him and they were soon riding up to the top of the building. Once they reached his floor he stepped out and turned to bid Tony goodbye.

"See you in a few?" He said questioningly.

"Yea. The others should be here around twelve, so that'll give us time to get everything ready. I'll come help you when I have mine and Pepper's tree up." Tony told him. Clint nodded as the doors began to close and the elevator continued up to the top floor. He wandered through the living area and into the kitchen in search of his girlfriend.

"Natasha?" He called out when he didn't find her.

"Yes?" She answered from down the hall. Clint walked in the direction of her voice and met her halfway as she carried Mara towards the living area.

"There are my girls!" He exclaimed, lifting his daughter from her mother's arms and planting a kiss on her cheek. She squealed with delight and wrapped her arms around his neck. With his free arm, Clint reached out and grabbed Natasha around the waist, pulling her in and gently kissing her. He felt her smile in response.

"Good morning." She said happily.

"Morning." He replied before turning his attention to Mara. "Hey sweetie, guess what came this morning!"

"What?" The infant squeaked enthusiastically.

"Christmas trees!" Clint exclaimed.

"Yaaay!" Mara yelled, clapping her hands together in excitement, even though he was sure she had no idea what he was talking about.

"That was fast." Natasha said as they walked out into the living area.

"Mhm. Tony should be bringing ours up any time now." Clint told her glancing towards the balcony. She followed his eyes to the window before giving him a puzzled look.

"What do you mean—" She was cut off by the sudden appearance of Tony in his Iron Man suit holding their tree above his head. Natasha gasped and rushed over to the door as he gently set the tree down. Before she could make it outside the billionaire had already begun flying back towards the ground.

"Well, there it is." Clint said excitedly. He placed Mara on her play mat on the floor and took Natasha's hand, pulling her out onto the balcony. "Here, grab that end."

"Um, okay." She said, unsure of what she was doing. They both picked up their ends and carefully began carrying the tree inside.

"There should be a tree stand on the counter." Clint told her once they were in. Natasha nodded and walked towards the kitchen in search of the stand. She soon returned with it in her hand and set in on the floor next to the tree.

"Okay, so what now?" She asked.

"We're going to gently lift it onto the stand." He explained as he crouched down to get a good grip. Natasha did has he did and waited for further instruction. "On the count of three," Clint said in preparation. "One, two, three." And with that the couple lifted the tree onto its stand and made sure it was screwed on properly. Once they were done they took a few steps back to admire their work.

"Wow." Natasha said appreciatively.

"What do you think? Does it look full enough?" Clint asked. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself up to him, kissing him deeply.

"I think it's perfect." She told him when they finally broke away. He smiled at her, brushing a strand of her curly hair from her face before kissing her again. The sudden ding of the elevator caused them to jump and glance at the elevator. Tony stepped out and smirked at them.

"Oh, please, don't let us interrupt!" He laughed. Clint and Natasha noticed that they were still enveloped in each other's arms and immediately tore away from each other. Tony began walking towards them to inspect their tree and he was followed by Bruce, Steve, and Sharon.

"Hey guys." Steve greeted them with a smile on his face. He shook Clint's hand and gave Natasha a quick hug before crouching down to say hello to Mara.

"Hi!" Sharon said as she hugged them both.

"Hey! It's been a while!" Natasha exclaimed. The last time she'd seen the former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent had been last month when the girls had decided to get together for a girl's night. Before Sharon could respond the elevator doors opened again to reveal Pepper, Thor, and Jane.

"Hope we're not late!" The physicist said apologetically.

"I told you, you're perfectly on time." Said Pepper.

"My friends!" Thor bellowed as he stormed into the room. He immediately began pulling every single one of them into a bone-crushing hug. When he finally got to Mara the thunder god let loose a hearty laugh. "Mara, my little friend!" He scooped her up off the floor and began tossing her into the air. The infant giggled uncontrollably.

Everyone started talking at once as they all tried to get caught up on what was going on in each other's lives. After a few minutes, however, Tony spoke up.

"Alright people! This tree sure as heck ain't gonna decorate itself!" The billionaire exclaimed as Pepper and Natasha carried in boxes of assorted decorations. Everyone immediately swarmed the boxes and began grabbing lights and tinsel. It didn't take long for Tony and Clint to get the lights on the tree and the star on top, leaving Steve, Thor, and Bruce to arrange the tinsel. Once they were done everyone began digging into the boxes of ornaments and pulling out whatever they could find.

It took less than thirty minutes to get every ornament on the tree, and Clint had to admit that it looked pretty damn good.

"Okay!" Clint clapped his hands together. "Let's light her up!"

"Wait!" Tony exclaimed as he pulled two small boxes out of his pocket. He handed one to Natasha and one to Mara who was resting in her arms. "Just a little something to commemorate your first tree decorating."

"Thank you Tony, that's very thoughtful." She said kindly as Mara began ripping the paper off her box. Natasha took the box from her daughter and opened it to reveal a small, pink rattle ornament that had _'Baby's First Christmas'_ written on it in white letters. Clint walked over and examined the ornament before shooting Tony a grateful look.

"That's beautiful Tony. Thanks." He said.

"Anything for my goddaughter." Tony laughed. He then turned and looked at Natasha expectantly. "Your turn!" She sighed and smiled as she ripped the paper off of her box and opened it, peeking inside. A small laugh escaped her lips as she faced Tony with a raised eyebrow.

"Well c'mon, let's see it." Clint pressed. She lifted a miniature gun ornament out of the box and held it up for everyone to see. Across the barrel of the gun _'Assassin's First Christmas'_ was written in bold, red letters. Everyone laughed as Natasha gave Tony a one armed hug.

"Thanks." She said with a chuckle.

"Well, aren't you gonna hang em' somewhere so we can light this sucker?" The billionaire asked. She walked over to the tree and hung her ornament on one of the few free branches before letting Mara hang her own. Once the new additions were secure they stepped back and watched as Clint went over to the outlet behind the tree and plugged in the lights. As soon as it was lit, everyone fell silent as they admired the tree's beauty. Clint rejoined his family and grabbed Natasha's hand, watching as their first Christmas tree shone brightly in front of them. In that moment, he couldn't imagine anything being more perfect.

**Whew! Lots of dialogue in this chapter. Sorry this pretty much took forever to get posted. I hate to say it, but life comes before fantasy. I'd love to hear what you all think of this chapter! I didn't get many reviews for the first one, so may I just remind you that the more reviews I get, the more motivating it is (hint, hint… nudge, nudge… elbow, ELBOW!). Did you like my little fun facts about Christmas trees? I just **_**had**_** to have Tony get them from North Carolina since I live there and all! Anyways, I planned out chapter names for this story and ended up with eight chapters plus an epilogue, so there's still plenty to come! Any speculations as to what Clint's special gift idea is? I'm sure someone will guess it. Oh, and what do you think of Pepper's plan to invite Betty (Bruce's old girlfriend) to come see Bruce for Christmas? Is it a good idea, or is it destined to end in disaster? Well, I'm rambling, so how about I shut up and give you a sneak peek for chapter 3:**

**Chapter 3-Christmas Specials: The Avengers get together and watch the classic Christmas movies, Natasha and Pepper move forward with their plans to contact Betty, and Clint makes a decision about Natasha's present.**

**Well, that's all for now I guess. Sorry if the next update takes too long. Sadly, there's this horrible place that my parents make me go, which I like to think of as prison, but the proper name for it is high school. I'm sure many of you are familiar with this dreadful place and how they make you take exams at the end of each semester, so surely you can understand when I tell you that said exams are coming up next week, so I won't have as much time to write. Just want to let you know that if I don't update for a while that I'm not giving up on the story, I just don't have time to update. **


	3. Christmas Specials

**Wow, it's been awhile! I tried soooo hard to get this done for you guys, you have no idea! First I had no clue what to write for this chapter, then I had exams so there was literally zero time for me to come up with something! I **_**would**_** report that all my exams are over and done with, except that yesterday was supposed to be an exam day but school was cancelled in my area due to wintry weather. No snow, hardly any ice. The cancelled it just cuz. Gotta love North Carolina! So, since I had the day off, I worked hard and finally finished this chapter for you guys! Thanks for being so patient! These chapters are probably gonna be super short, which is good and bad. Bad cuz you won't get as much story, but good cuz they should be posted a lot quicker! Sorry for the long note. I'll let you go now…**

**Chapter 3-Christmas Specials**

**Natasha**

Natasha woke to the sound of Mara's crying like she often did. It was almost 9:00am.

_"Right on time."_ She thought to herself as she carefully propped herself up so she didn't disturb Clint. Natasha leaned over and kissed his forehead before climbing out of bed and silently walking out the door and down the hall. When she reached Mara's room Natasha poked her head inside and saw the two-year-old standing up in her crib. As soon as she saw her mother, Mara stopped crying and a huge grin spread across her face.

"Mama!" She squealed, stretching her arms out in an attempt to reach Natasha.

"Hey baby." She said softly as she walked over and lifted her daughter out of her crib. She carried her out into the kitchen and placed her in her highchair before retrieving a box of Cheerios from one of the cabinets. After pouring some cereal onto the tray of the highchair, Natasha returned to the kitchen and began preparing some scrambled eggs for her and Clint to eat. She had just poured the mixture into a pan when she felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her waist from behind. Natasha smiled as Clint pressed his lips to her neck.

"Good morning." He murmured. She smiled and turned to face him, snaking her arms around his neck and pulling him in for a kiss.

"Morning." She breathed when they finally broke away. Clint smiled and glanced over her shoulder at the eggs.

"That smells good." He said as she turned back around and continued her cooking.

"They should be ready in a few minutes." Natasha told him. He moved over to where Mara was eating and began playfully teasing her with the Cheerios while she finished the eggs and flipped them on to plates. After setting the food on the table, Natasha watched as Clint aimed pieces of cereal at their daughter's open mouth, tossing them to her. Mara caught each one, bringing a smile to her father's face.

"Dang you're good!" He laughed as she caught the last Cheerio.

"She's one gifted kid." Natasha agreed. Clint smiled and tickled Mara's stomach.

"Ouch!" He said, pulling his hand back when she grabbed his finger.

"What's wrong? She too strong for ya?" Natasha teased. He rolled his eyes.

"No, I just got a little shock."

"Yea, I'm sure you did." She said with a giggle.

"Excuse me, Mrs. Romanoff? Mr. Barton?" JARVIS politely interrupted. "Mr. Stark has requested that you come to the penthouse floor as soon as possible." Natasha sighed. What could he possibly want at nine-thirty in the morning?

"Tell him we'll be up in the next thirty minutes." She replied.

"Yes M'am." The AI said before disappearing. They swallowed their eggs and cleaned their dishes before heading back to their room. Clint went to take a quick shower while Natasha dressed Mara in a pair of leggings and a long-sleeved T-shirt. Once the two year old was ready she carried her to her and Clint's room and set her down on the bed before getting dressed.

As she slid a fresh shirt over her head, Clint came out of the bathroom wearing worn jeans and a gray T-shirt. He scooped Mara up off the bed and waited for Natasha by the door. She quickly finished dressing and soon they were riding the elevator to the top floor. When the doors opened they saw that everyone was already there, crammed together on the various pieces of furniture and facing the TV.

"Finally!" Tony exclaimed when he saw them come in. "Now we can start."

"Start what?" Natasha asked cautiously.

"Christmas movie marathon!" The billionaire said excitedly. She and Clint exchanged nervous glances while Mara clapped her hands at Tony's enthusiasm.

"Ummm, Tony…" Clint said questioningly as he began putting a disk in the DVD player. "How many movies are we watching?"

"Not sure." Tony replied. "We're just gonna go down the list."

"How long is the list?" Natasha chimed in. He turned around and gave them both an annoyed look.

"Do you two have something better to do today?" They shook their heads. "Then quit complaining and sit down." The billionaire ordered.

"Alright then, what are we watching first?" Natasha asked.

"The classics." Tony answered. He face-palmed when she gave him a confused look. "Ya know, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer? Frosty the Snowman? How the Grinch Stole Christmas?" The names sounded familiar…

"Oh, right." She said, pretending to know exactly what he was talking about. He put the first disk into the DVD player and the opening credits of Rudolph began to roll. Natasha sighed. It was going to be a long day…

She had to say that she was pleasantly surprised at how much she was enjoying all these Christmas movies. The ones Tony had called classics had been really good despite how old they were. The newer, animated ones, like The Polar Express and A Christmas Carol had come later and Natasha had loved them. Now they were in the middle of watching Arthur Christmas, marking the marathon's halfway point.

"If anyone is hungry I've got some cookies in the kitchen." Pepper said quietly as the movie began. Everyone responded enthusiastically to the idea of a snack and the pregnant woman heaved herself off the couch and began walking towards the kitchen. "Natasha, could you help me?"

"Sure." She answered, getting up to follow her. Once they were both in the kitchen arranging cookies on plates, Pepper leaned in close and quietly began talking to her.

"I've got some news." She whispered. Natasha glanced over her shoulder before leaning in to listen.

"What is it?" She asked.

"I tried to contact Betty." Pepper replied.

"And?"

"Culver University is on holiday break, so I couldn't get a hold of her." She said with disappointment.

"Maybe it's for the best." Natasha said, still unsure that any of this was even a good idea.

"I was thinking the same thing." Pepper agreed. "But then I got a call from one of her assistants, and she told me that Betty was going to be in Manhattan for the holidays to give a lecture for some science museum opening."

"Seriously?" Natasha exclaimed. Pepper shushed her and nodded.

"Yes! Can you believe it? It _must_ be fate!" The pregnant woman said excitedly. Natasha stood there dumbfounded. What were the odds? "I got all the details from the assistant, so I figured we could just go to the lecture and talk to her there."

"Okay…" She said skeptically. Pepper clapped her hands excitedly before lifting the plate of cookies off the counter and carrying them into the living room. They rejoined the others and finished the movie as it was starting to get dark outside.

"Alright," Tony said, standing up to change the disks. "Who's ready for Christmas Vacation?"

**Clint**

By the time they finished the last of the movies it was a few hours past Mara's bedtime. Clint and Natasha quietly bid their friends goodnight and carried their sleeping daughter downstairs.

"I'll go put her down." Natasha whispered after they stepped out of the elevator. He nodded and kissed the infant goodnight before going down the hall to their room and getting ready for bed. He had just climbed into bed when Natasha slipped inside and closed the door behind her. Without bothering to change her clothes she hopped onto the bed next to Clint and snuggled up against his side.

"Tired?" He asked, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

"Who would have thought watching a million Christmas movies could be so exhausting?" She said with a yawn.

"You should get some rest." He told her. Natasha looked up at him with an alluring smile.

"Well," she said softly, tracing circles on his chest. "I'm not _that_ tired…" A knowing look came across his face as she pulled his head down and kissed him. He slid his other arm around her waist as she slowly climbed on top of him. The kiss soon became more passionate as her hands found their way under his shirt.

Just then, cries erupted from down the hall, causing both of them to freeze where they were. Natasha sighed heavily and rolled off of him and onto her back. She sat up, shoved herself off the bed, and headed for the door.

"I've got her." Natasha said as she left the room. Once she was gone Clint couldn't help but grin like an idiot. He was so hopelessly in love with that woman that it was starting to drive him crazy. So, he was going to do something about it. He was going to buy her a ring.

**Okay, I'm sorry. It's a super crappy chapter that probably bored you to sleep and definitely doesn't make up for how long I made you wait. However, in the long run, you'll realize that there are some MEGA hints for my upcoming stories in this chapter. I feel like I'm overdoing this story line, but someone gave me the idea to do a story about when all the avengers kids are teens, which gave me yet another awesome idea that I just **_**have**_** to do! I'm not telling what this idea is, but like I said, there will be very subtle hints that you may pick up on if you're paying attention. Anyways, you all were right. Clint is buying a ring (my stories are too predictable). I'm sure this will make you all happy. So, to wrap this up, 1) Sorry the chapter was short, that it sucked, and that it took so long, 2) I pinky swear, the last few chapters will be a million times better, this was all just plot development, 3) Reviews are always appreciated ****, and 4) A quick preview:**

**Chapter 4-The Perfect Gift: Clint and Tony shop for Natasha's present; Natasha struggles with what to get Clint. Pepper helps **_**a lot**_**. So, basically Christmas shopping. **

**Well, that's all for now! I think this chapter was so low on detail because I just wanted to get some necessary details out of the way before I got to all the good stuff, so yea. Sorry bout that. The next chapter will definitely be up sooner now that I've got my creative juices flowing. Thanks for reading!**


	4. The Perfect Gift

**Wow, it sure has been a while! As always, I'd like to apologize for the delay! Writer's block :-[ I literally never have time to write anymore since my new semester started! It suuucks! Just know that I'm trying as hard as I can to get these chapters up! Again, supersized sorry! Thanks for your patience!**

**Chapter 4-The Perfect Gift**

**Clint**

Clint woke bright and early the next morning and quietly slid out of bed. Without waking Natasha he quickly left the room and snuck down the hall to check on Mara. Once he saw that his daughter was sleeping soundly he headed for the living area.

"J.A.R.V.I.S.?" He called out.

"Good morning, Mr. Barton. How may I be of assistance?" The AI replied.

"I need you to get Tony up and tell him to meet me down here." Clint ordered.

"Um, Mr. Stark has been very adamant about…"

"Just tell him it's important." He cut J.A.R.V.I.S. off midsentence. There was a short pause before he finally complied.

"Yes sir."

In the meantime, Clint decided to make himself some coffee. He had just started to brew a pot when the artificial intelligence was back.

"Sir, Mr. Stark said to very politely tell you to 'go fuck yourself.'" That brought a smirk to his face.

"Okay, then tell him it's about Natasha's gift." He said, pouring himself a cup of coffee. Less than five minutes later, the elevator dinged and Tony practically ran up to him, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him excitedly.

"WHAT IS IT, WHAT IS IT, WHAT IS IT!?" He shouted repeatedly.

"Shut up!" Clint whispered, pointing down the hall. "Mara and Natasha are still sleeping!" The billionaire silenced himself immediately.

"Sorry." He said sheepishly. Clint rolled his eyes and sat down at the table. Tony eagerly joined him. "So, you've decided?"

"Yes." He told him. "And I'm gonna need your help."

"Yea, sure thing." Tony agreed. "Soooo, what is it?" Clint glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one was listening before leaning in so only Tony could hear.

"A ring." He whispered. The billionaire's eyes went wide.

"Like, an e_ngagement_ ring?" He whispered back. Clint nodded. "OH MY…" Tony began but a hand flew out and covered his mouth.

"_Shut. Up._" The archer said dangerously. He nodded and sat quietly as Clint continued. "I want you to help me pick one out."

"Really?" He asked in disbelief.

"Well, I'm completely clueless when it comes to this kind of stuff, and you have experience, being married and all…" Clint trailed off.

"Yea, no worries man. I've got your back." Tony said, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Thanks." He replied gratefully. "So, where do we start?"

"Oh, you want to start now?" Tony asked.

"There's only three days left until Christmas! I'm kinda out of time, dude!" Clint exclaimed.

"Alright, then get dressed. We're leaving in fifteen minutes." He ordered, pushing away from the table.

"Okay." Clint agreed before jumping up and rushing towards the bedroom.

**Natasha**

Natasha reached out next to her in search of Clint but only found a handful of sheets. She sat up and looked around the room but her boyfriend was nowhere to be found. She sighed and threw her legs over the side of the bed. Mara should be up any second now.

As she walked down the hall Natasha could hear voices coming from the kitchen. She quickly identified the voices as Tony's and Clint's but they were talking in such hushed tones that she could barely hear them. Without paying them much attention, Natasha quietly slipped into Mara's room and closed the door behind her. She walked over to the crib to find her daughter sitting upright playing with her favorite teddy bear.

"Good morning sunshine." She said affectionately as she lifted the toddler into her arms.

"Mommy!" Mara exclaimed before throwing her arms around her mother's neck and resting her head on her shoulder. Natasha carried her from her room and down the hall when Clint came rushing towards them, stopping just in time to avoid a collision.

"Someone's in a rush." She observed as he leaned in to kiss her. "Going somewhere?"

"Uh, yea." Clint told her. "Tony and I are running out for a bit."

"Should I be worried?" Natasha asked, knowing that going out with Tony could mean a variety of things, most of them bad.

"No, we're just running a few errands for Pepper." He said calmly. Almost too calmly…

"Okay, well call if you're gonna be out late." She ordered as he planted a kiss on Mara's head.

"Sure thing." Clint said before rushing past her. "I'll see you later."

"Bye." Natasha replied. She continued towards the kitchen to whip up some breakfast for her and Mara when the ding of the elevator sounded and Pepper stepped out.

"Oh. Good morning." She said cheerily when she saw Natasha.

"Morning." She replied.

"You're just the person I wanted to talk to." Pepper told her as she followed her into the kitchen and sat down at the table.

"What about?" Natasha asked, placing Mara in her highchair and retrieving the box of Cheerios from the cabinet.

"Tomorrow," Pepper began as she poured the Cheerios on to Mara's tray.

"What about tomorrow?"

"You know, the lecture at the science museum? We're supposed to go and talk to Betty…" The pregnant woman trailed off.

"It's tomorrow?" Natasha gasped.

"Yea, I thought I told you." Pepper said thoughtfully.

"Oh, Pepper, I don't have time tomorrow. I have to wrap presents and figure out what we're going to do for Christmas Eve…" Natasha listed off. "Oh, and let's not forget that I still need to find a present for Clint."

"You haven't gotten Clint a Christmas present yet?" Pepper exclaimed, her eyes wide with shock. "Christmas is in _three_ days Natasha!"

"I know, I know! You have no idea how hard it is to shop for him, though. It is literally impossible to figure out what he wants." She complained. "I'm so screwed."

"Relax." Pepper said soothingly. "We can go shopping tomorrow before the museum opening, alright?" Natasha sighed and nodded.

"Yea, that sounds good."

"Great!" Pepper clapped her hands. "Do you have _any _idea of what you may want to get him?"

"Nope." She shook her head. "No clue."

"Don't worry." The pregnant woman told her. "You'll know it when you see it."

**Clint**

"Okay, just lay low and follow my lead." Tony said quietly as he put on his sunglasses and zipped up his jacket. They climbed out of the car and began walking through the parking lot towards a busy-looking shopping mall. Clint watched as Tony ducked behind cars when people walked by, trying hard to keep his face hidden.

"_What_ are you doing?" He asked, giving the billionaire a judgmental look.

"Uh, hiding." Tony replied. "In case you don't remember, I am a famous superhero."

"Yea, so am I. Except _I_ followed the golden superhero rule: keep your identity a secret." Clint said, rolling his eyes.

"Pft! Where's the fun in that?" He asked critically as they entered the mall. They quickly made their way to the jewelry store Tony had recommended and managed to get there without anyone recognizing the billionaire-in-disguise. As soon as they walked in, Clint let out a low whistle as he looked around.

"Fancy." He commented as Tony led him up to the counter.

"Yea it is. This is one of the finest diamond retailers in New York." He told him.

"Sounds expensive…" Clint said nervously.

"Well, lucky for you, cost isn't an issue!" Tony caught the attention of one of the staff and gestured for him to come over.

"I'm going to pay you back, Tony. Every last cent." He said with determination. Before the billionaire could try and tell him that he didn't have to pay him back, the employee he had flagged down reached them.

"Hello, gentlemen. Is there something I can help you with?" The man, whose nametag read Greg, asked politely.

"Yes." Tony said, placing a hand on Clint's shoulder. "My friend here is looking to propose to his girl."

"Oh, of course." Greg's face lit up as he gestured for them to follow him. "Our engagement ring collection is right over here."

"Excellent. Thank you sir." Tony's eyes glazed over the display cases.

"Just let me know if you need anything." Greg offered before leaving them to look around. Clint glanced at Tony, anxious feelings swirling through him.

"Okay buddy," the billionaire said, patting him on the back. "Let's get to work."

"No." Clint said apathetically after inspecting the ring Tony had suggested. "It's just not… _her_."

"Okay, dude, you have rejected almost _every_ ring here. You're going to have to pick one of them." He exclaimed, setting the ring down.

"I just don't want to pick one she'll hate." Clint said sheepishly.

"No matter which one you pick, I can guarantee she'll love it." Tony told him. "Now pick one!"

"I'm working on it, just give me a sec." He sighed before walking across the store to think. This was hopeless! He was never going to find the right one. It wasn't like in the movies when the man suddenly sees the perfect ring and has that 'Aha!' moment. This was real… and it was _hard_!

Frustrated, he leaned on one of the nearby display cases, staring down at the glittering jewelry. The dazzling assortment shone brightly up at him as his eyes glazed over the hypnotic accessories. When his gaze reached the end of the case, a small sparkle that was separated from the rest of the jewelry caught his attention. He moved towards it and found that it was an elegant, vintage ring that had fallen off of its display.

"Excuse me, sir?" One of the store's employees had come up after noticing his interest in the case. "Is there something you'd like to look at?"

"Yea, that ring right there." Clint said, pointing towards the corner of the case.

"Oh, it must have fallen." The man said, reaching in to retrieve the ring. He placed it in Clint's outstretched hand so that he could examine it. "I believe that was sold to us a few months back."

"It's beautiful." He mumbled. Not only was it beautiful, but it was unique and looked like it had a lot of history to it. It was just like Natasha…

"Hey, Clint. Whatcha got there?" Tony came up behind him and looked over his shoulder at the ring. "That one's nice." He commented.

"No." Clint said surely. "It's perfect."

**Yaaaay! Clint bought the ring! This is officially happening! So glad I finally finished this chapter! The next one is gonna be awesome and I can't wait to do it! I feel this chapter is pretty self explanatory so I'll just leave you with a preview for chapter five!**

**Chapter 5-Betty: Natasha **_**finally**_** gets Clint's gift. She and Pepper go to the museum opening to meet the one and only Betty Ross.**

**I know a lot of you have been asking for me to hurry up and get Betty into the story, so here you go! This story is shorter than Taken, so there are only a few more chapters to this before I move on to the next portion of the story line. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope you return for the next installment! Till next time, ttfn!**


	5. Betty

**According to the reviews I'm getting, this is a highly anticipated chapter. Obviously, Betty is going to be introduced which is something everyone has been excited about. I've just noticed that everyone writes fanfiction about Tony and Pepper or Steve and Peggy/Sharon and especially about Clint and Natasha. So I thought, what about Bruce? Doesn't he deserve someone too? And that thought led to my decision to bring Betty Ross into this storyline. Hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 5-Betty**

**Natasha**

When Clint returned home that evening, Natasha couldn't help but notice his good mood. When he stepped off the elevator he walked right up to her, swept her feet out from under her, and kissed her.

"Clint!" She squealed. "Put me down!"

"Hmmm…" He said thoughtfully. "Nah, I'm good."

"I'm serious." She laughed. Clint finally complied and gently set her on her feet. "Good day?"

"You could say that." He replied as he made his way over to where Mar was playing and sat down next to her. Natasha joined them and watched as her boyfriend and daughter played with Barbies and My Little Ponies.

"It amazes me how you can just sit there for hours and play with dolls." She criticized as Clint carefully dressed one of Mara's Barbies in an evening gown.

"Hey, I like playing with her." He said defensively. "Even if that means I have to dress dolls and talk in high-pitched girly voices." Natasha raised her hands in surrender.

"Better you than me." She said. "Which reminds me, are you free to watch her tomorrow? Pepper and I need to run out for a bit."

"Uhhhh…" Clint said sheepishly. "Actually, Tony needs me to help him with some big Christmas Eve thing and I sorta promised to help."

"Never mind," she sighed, "I can just take her with me. She needs to get some fresh air anyways."

"Are you sure?" He asked. "I can rearrange plans with Tony if you really need me to."

"No, no. It's fine. We're just running over to the new science museum in midtown for the opening ceremony."

Clint shot her a confused look.

"I never pictured you as a science geek, Nat."

"Pepper's the one that wants to go. I'm just tagging along." Natasha lied. Pepper had made her swear not to say a word about Betty to any of the guys. If one of them found out, it'd only be a matter of time before Bruce heard about it. Then the whole surprise would be ruined.

Clint didn't question her about her motives for going to the museum any further and he continued to play with their daughter while she watched. Sighing, Natasha scooted over next to him and rested her head on his shoulder. He grabbed her hand as she closed her eyes and smiled.

"You know, Clint." She mumbled drowsily. "You're a pretty great dad."

"That's a pretty good compliment coming from the world's best mom." He murmured, giving her hand a gentle squeeze as he placed a kiss on the top of her head.

"I'm not the world's best mom." She sighed without opening her eyes.

"What are you talking about? Of course you are." Clint insisted.

"Really?" Natasha scoffed as she sat up. "Would the world's best mom allow her daughter to get kidnapped?"

"You had no control over that." He said calmly, pulling her back towards him. She rested her head on his shoulder once more and closed her eyes to prevent a few tears from spilling over. The day Mara was taken would haunt her forever.

"But," Clint continued. "You did everything you could to get her back safely. You nearly died for her! I'd say that _that _automatically puts you at the top of the Best Moms List."

"Whatever you say." Natasha replied drowsily, leaning heavily on his shoulder. It was getting late and she hadn't gotten much sleep with all this Christmas preparation stuff, so it was safe to say that she was completely exhausted.

"You're not tired are you?" Clint teased, nudging her a bit.

"Mmm." Was all she could manage before sleep consumed her.

**Clint**

"Nat?" Clint whispered, shaking Natasha gently. She was out like a light. Carefully he got to his feet and lifted her into his arms. He glanced at Mara to make sure she was staying in place before carrying his girlfriend down the hall and into their room. Clint gently set her down on the bed and covered her with a blanket.

"I love you." He whispered, placing a gently kiss on her forehead before leaving.

When he returned to the living room Mara was still sitting in the exact same place playing with her dolls. Smiling, he went over and scooped her off the floor, tossing her in the air a few times.

"Daddy!" She squealed with laughter. Clint chuckled and lowered his daughter so that she was resting against his chest before plopping down on the couch.

"You know what sweetie?" He murmured, stroking Mara's cheek. "I'm gonna marry your mom." Clint pulled the ring box from his pocket and opened it so his daughter could see. Her eyes went wide with fascination as she carefully reached out and touched the ring. "You think it's good enough for her."

"Pretty." She said in amazement.

"Yea, I thought so too." He said, putting the ring back in his pocket and pulling Mara close.

**Natasha**

The next morning, Natasha woke up to Pepper pounding loudly on the bedroom door.

"Natasha, if you're still in bed I swear to God…" She yelled from the hall. Natasha jumped out of bed and ran over to the door.

"I'm up, I'm up." She said tiredly. "Don't get all worked up. You might induce early labor."

"Not funny." Pepper shot her a glare. "I just thought I'd tell you that the opening is in an hour, so you'd better get ready."

"Shit." Natasha muttered, running back into the bedroom. "Oh!" She quickly spun around. "Could you get Mara ready, please? Clint can't watch her today so she's coming with us."

"You got it." Pepper waddled towards Mara's room while Natasha closed her door.

"What's going on?" Clint mumbled sleepily from the bed.

"I overslept. Running a bit late." She said over her shoulder before grabbing an outfit from her closet and dashing into the bathroom. Clint groaned when the light from the bathroom hit him before Natasha shut the door. She quickly changed and was brushing her teeth when there was a light knock at the door. Clint poked his head inside and smiled before walking in.

"Morning." He mumbled. Natasha spit into the sink and rinsed her mouth.

"Morning." She replied. Clint wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against him then leaned down and kissed her gently.

"You leaving?" He asked when he pulled away.

"Yea, in a minute." She told him.

"Have fun, I guess. Although I can't imagine how fun a science museum opening could possibly be…" Clint said thoughtfully. Natasha laughed and wriggled her way out of his arms.

"I need to go." Natasha said, leaving him alone in the bathroom. "I'll see you tonight."

"Bye." He called after her as she rushed from the room. When she entered the living area Pepper was waiting with Mara by the elevator.

"You ready?" She asked, pressing the button.

"I guess so." Natasha replied, taking her daughter from Pepper's arms.

"Okay then." The pregnant woman said with determination. "Let's do this."

Natasha pulled up to the curb and parked the car right in front of the science museum. She and Pepper both climbed out and took a moment to collect themselves.

"So, what's the plan?" Natasha asked as she opened the back door of the car and began undoing Mara's seatbelt.

"We go in, let them do the museum opening thing, then we pull Dr. Ross aside and talk to her." Pepper said simply. "Now let's go before I freeze to death." She began making her way towards the museum.

"Your Aunt Pepper is crazy." Natasha mumbled to her daughter as she lifted her out of her car seat and followed the pregnant woman inside.

Once they were in they began squeezing through the large crowd of people that were already there.

"It's packed!" Natasha shouted over the crowd's loud chatter.

"We just need to get near the stage!" Pepper yelled back. "Stay close to me!" Natasha grabbed on to her shoulder with her free hand and began following her as she shoved her way through hoards of people. "Excuse me, pardon me, pregnant lady coming through!" She shouted. Natasha smirked when people immediately jumped out of the way after seeing Pepper's condition. No one wants to mess with a hormonal pregnant woman.

After a few minutes of easily shoving their way through the crowd, Pepper and Natasha finally made it to the stage.

"Over there." Natasha pointed to the stairs that led up to the stage where Betty was standing. "We can wait there until the end of the speech or whatever. Catch her as she's coming off."

"Okay." Pepper followed her to the corner of the room where they waited for the ceremony to begin. A few minutes later someone tapped the microphone and began speaking.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to welcome you to the official opening of the Manhattan Museum of Biological Science." The announcer said enthusiastically. "And now, it is my great honor to introduce a truly brilliant mind in the world of microbiology, Dr. Elizabeth Ross." The crowd exploded with cheers and clapping as the young doctor made her way onto the stage and to the microphone.

"Thank you, Dr. Matthews." She said sweetly. "And thank _you_ all for such a warm welcome."

"She's pretty." Pepper commented as Betty launched into her well-prepared speech about the importance of biology.

"Yea." Natasha said idly while Mara tugged at her hair. "Mara, stop it." She whispered to the toddler who only giggled in response.

"Natasha, she's almost done." Pepper said anxiously, pulling her attention away from her daughter. She tuned in to what Betty was saying just in time to hear the end of the speech.

"Thank you again for your attention and time. Please, enjoy the museum." The crowd clapped again as Betty walked of stage before dispersing to tour the museum.

"Dr. Ross?" Pepper called out to the scientist as she passed by. Betty looked around curiously until she finally found the person who'd called her.

"Can I help you?" She asked, giving Pepper a warm smile.

"That was quite a speech you gave." Pepper told her, holding out her hand.

"Thanks." Betty took her hand and shook it.

"I was hoping that we could maybe speak with you about a couple of things." She continued.

"What things?" The scientist looked confused.

"When was the last time you had contact with Bruce Banner?" Natasha butt in, trying to get to the point. Betty's friendly expression disappeared.

"Excuse me?" She said, caught off guard by the unexpected question.

"How long has it been since you've seen him?" Natasha pressed, earning a look from Pepper that screamed _'If you screw this up I'll kill you.'_

"I'm sorry, but I can't speak with you about this." Betty told them, taking a step back. "I need to go."

"Dr. Ross, please wait!" Pepper stepped in front of her.

"What do you people want from me?" The scientist suddenly seemed angry. "Who are you?"

"Oh, how rude of me." Pepper scolded herself. "My name is Pepper Stark, and this," she gestured to Natasha, "is my good friend Natasha Romanoff and her daughter Mara." Natasha nodded to her.

"Wait," Betty interrupted. "Pepper Stark as in Tony Stark's wife?"

"Yes." Pepper nodded enthusiastically. "I was hoping that maybe we could talk to you about Dr. Banner."

"Your husband worked with him during the extra terrestrial attack here in Manhattan." Betty realized as she tried to process this new information. "Do _you_ have contact with Bruce?"

"Better than that." Natasha cut in. "We know where he is."

"Oh my God." Betty gasped.

"Dr. Ross, would you like to continue this conversation over coffee?" Pepper asked.

"Yes!" The scientist exclaimed. "And please, call me Betty."

"Betty, then." She gestured towards the museum exit. "Shall we?"

* * *

"I haven't seen him since the Harlem incident." Betty sighed as she sipped her steaming coffee. "I've been trying to track him down ever since."

"So, I'm assuming you'd be interested in seeing him again?" Pepper implied.

"Of course! That is, if he wants to see me." Betty lowered her eyes. "Does he want to see me?"

"Definitely." Pepper assured her.

"Actually," Natasha chimed in. "We didn't exactly ask him."

"Wait, so you _don't _know if he wants to see me again?" The poor scientist looked confused.

"Well, we think he does. Since I've known him, Bruce has always been sort of shy." Pepper told her.

"What if you're wrong?" Betty worried. "What if seeing me makes him... angry."

"That wouldn't happen." Natasha said. "He's got it under control."

"Yea, Tony has worked with him a lot, and now he can keep The Other Guy at bay as he pleases. It's quite impressive." Pepper smiled.

"Do you really think I could see him?" Betty asked hopefully.

"Of course." Pepper said as she dug through her wallet for a business card. "Will you be around on Christmas day?"

"I can be." She replied. Pepper wrote something on the back of the card and slid it over to her.

"Great, just come to the address on the card that day and then give it to the woman at the front desk. She'll let you up."

Betty took the card and studied it.

"Alright." She said confidently. "I'll be there. Christmas day." Taking a final swig of her coffee, Betty stood up from the table they were sitting at and gave them a grateful look.

"Thank you _so_ much." She said.

Pepper smiled.

"Don't mention it." And with that, Betty walked gleefully out of the coffee shop and disappeared from view.

"Well, looks like we've got Bruce's gift down." Natasha said as she wrapped Mara in her coat and rose from her chair. "Next up, Clint."

**I'm soooooo sorry this took forever! School is literally a living Hell this semester! Plus, I had a bit of a family emergency that has been occupying my attention, but everything's good now :-) So, if anyone is even still reading this, I hope you've been enjoying it! Two more chapters and an epilogue before I can move on to the next story I've got planned! Reviews are my favorites, just so you know… Oh! And here's a preview for the next chapter:**

**Chapter 6-Christmas Eve: Tony helps Clint prepare to pop the question, all the Avengers come over to spend Christmas Eve together, and there's a very happy, special moment.**

**PS: I know I told you I'd let you know what Clint's gift is, but since it took so long for me to post this I decided I'd make it a surprise in the last chapter. So sorry if any of you were looking forward to that.**


	6. Sorry for the delay

Okay, so I haven't updated this story in a while which sucks, but there's a good reason behind it I promise! So, I was almost done with the next chapter. I decided a few days ago to go and finish it up because I knew I had made you guys wait waaaay too long for it, but when I opened my computer, it died. My laptop is completely and utterly dead. All my files, pictures... everything is gone, including the next chapter. I'm very upset about this (I cried all night) and I'm sorry that this means you guys have to wait even longer, but I promise I will rewrite the chapter and hopefully finish the story towards the beginning of summer. I haven't really had a lot of time to work on ANYTHING since exams are coming up, so sorry that I've kind of fallen of the face of the earth. Oh, and if all this wasn't bad enough for me, one of my stories got deleted from this site. I don't know what happened, it just disappeared. I plan on reposting that as well (if any of you were reading The Archer & The Spy) but before I do that I'm going to try and finish this story and A Onetime Thing. Just thought I'd let you all know what's going on because I kind of feel like I owe it to you. You guys have been really patient, and trust me, I'm doing the best I can! Thanks for being awesome and understanding. You all rock!


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